Skills & Spills Cookery School – Cuisine by Nadine

Teen Chef – 3 Nov 2018

2 November, 20182 November, 2018Leave a comment

This week is our first Teen Chef Class @ Coulsdon and we will be making – Pan-roast cod loin wrapped in pancetta with sage, served on braised Puy lentils.

This rustic cod loin with lentils recipe is a true winter warmer. Wrapping the cod in pancetta keeps it moist and succulent as it roasts and the Pancetta adds salty depth to the puy lentils. The loin of cod is the middle third of a cod fillet, and is especially moist and flaky. As with the rest of the fish, cod loin has a sweet, subtle flavour and pearly white flesh.

Puy Lentils are pulses that are rich in minerals, vitamins and fibre, yet low in fat. Puy lentils are considered by many to be the best lentil because of their unique peppery flavour and the fact they hold their shape during cooking. They are the only lentil to be identified by an area of cultivation – grown in the Le Puy region of France.

This week we will be using the following skills to make our dish: Washing, peeling, cutting, blanching, sweating, simmering. Wrapping, roasting & making a bouquet garni.

A few cooking skills every teenager should know…

17 October, 201818 October, 2018Leave a comment

If your teen’s culinary expertise extends to little more than warming baked beans its time for them to learn some cooking techniques and skills alongside new recipes to make the most of fresh seasonal ingredients. Starting with the basics:

1. How to boil water in a pan & drain safely
A basic skill, but essential needed for cooking veg, pasta, and rice and many other key components that make up a meal.
2. How to cook eggs
So many variations an absolute staple for many a meal.
3. Knife skills
Learning correct knifes early on will set you up for life.
4. At least one pasta dish
Learn how to make lasagne or a bolognese you will be surprised how many times you will fall back on it.
5. Knowing when meat is fully cooked
Understanding how to cut & cook different types of meat.
6. Food hygiene
Understanding basic food hygiene and the importance of using different chopping boards for cooked and raw meat, washing hands before preparing, and after handling raw meat.

New Teen Classes available to book, first class 3 November – Coulsdon

Junior Chef – 13/14 Oct 2018

10 October, 201810 October, 2018Leave a comment

Autumnal Chicken with Apples & Sweet Potato Mash

This week our Junior Chefs are back on seasonality talking about apples and will prep and create a chicken dish with sautéed apples and a sweet potato mash. This autumnal chicken dish bags lot of flavour, we will be browning Chicken and then simmering with chopped apple, shallot, garlic, and a splash of cream, for a tasty cosy dish. You’ll want a firm, crisp apple, such as Braeburn, or Granny Smith.

Apples are one of the most widely cultivated tree fruits. There are over 7,000 varieties in existence, many of which are grown in Britain but, despite that, only around 12 varieties are commonly sold in UK supermarkets, of which many are imported.

Apples were a favourite of the ancient Greeks and considered a luxury fruit by the Romans.
Colours range from red, to yellow and green, but all varieties fall into one of two categories: eating, also sometimes called dessert apples or cooking, with the latter being more tart in flavour.

All apples are a good source of vitamins A and C, as well as fibre.
Availability; All year round, though British apples are at their best from September to November. When buying select firm fruit, with no blemishes, bruising or wrinkles. The fragrance of an apple is a good indicator of freshness and quality.
All ‘eating’ apples can be used in cooking but the opposite is not the case. Bramley is the definitive English cooking apple. For cooked dishes requiring a firmer texture Cox, Braeburn or Granny Smith are a good choice.

In this week’s dish we will be using the following skills:
Skills used include:
Washing, peeling, measuring, cutting, chopping, slicing, coring, mincing, sautéing, boiling squeezing, simmering and mashing.

Junior Chef – 6/7 Oct 2018

5 October, 201810 October, 2018Leave a comment

This week our Junior Chefs will be making pizza so the emphasis this week is not so much on seasonality, but the technique of making dough.

Pizza is a very popular dish throughout the world this savoury dish of Italian origin, is normally round consisting of a flattened base wheat-based dough, topped with tomatoes, cheese, and various other ingredients then baked at a high temperature, traditionally in a wood-fired oven.

Interesting fact for you Junior Chefs!

In the 1800s, most Italians thought of pizza as a peasant meal. That changed when a baker named Raffaele Esposito created a margarita pizza for visiting royalty. The king and queen were impressed by the colors of the Italian flag represented by the pizza’s white mozzarella cheese, red tomato sauce, and green basil. Pizza became fashionable overnight and was soon a staple in restaurants all across the country. (Reference: Wikipedia: Fun Facts about Pizza.)

This week our Junior Chefs will be learning some new skills to make their pizzas including: Washing, weighing, measuring, chopping, mixing/combining, kneading, and baking.
Neapolitans, the masters of pizza baking, say the dough should be made from brewer’s yeast, flour, salt, and water. Some also add a little olive oil!

Junior Chefs will need lots of energy as kneading dough by hand can take up to 10 minutes as we will need to keep working it until the dough feels smooth and stretchy, but working quickly because over-handling will toughen the dough. Whilst our dough is left to rise we will have lots to do preparing our pizza topping chopping and cutting our chosen ingredients.

Junior Chef – 6/7 Oct 2018

4 October, 201810 October, 2018Leave a comment

To all our Junior Chefs last weekend you did a fantastic job. It was our first class in Wallington and what a busy class it was; which is why we don’t have any pictures!!!!

Thank you to all the parents who gave me such wonderful feedback, it is very much appreciated.

This week we will be making Pizza – dough and all!